Paige's Choice
by FaithInHim4ever
Summary: When Paige must make a decision that could affect either of her sisters, will she be able to make the right choice? R/R


DISCLIAMER: I DO NOT own any of the characters from "Charmed

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT own any of the characters from "Charmed." They belong to the WB. I do however own Melinda Kaitlyn, who is Piper and Leo's daughter.

Enjoy!

A/N: I wrote this story around the time Wyatt was born. I didn't really like him, so I gave Piper the daughter she should have had in the first place. But this Melinda is mine.

"Paige's Choice"

"She's what?" Phoebe asked in surprise as she and Piper sat on the couch, drinking tea one Saturday night. Kimberly was sitting in Piper's lap, while Melinda was laying in her bassinet.

It had been three weeks since Melinda had been born and Piper was now seeing what Phoebe had to go through every day. It wasn't that taking care of her little girl was not a fun job, but sometimes it wore her down.

"Amanda's moving in with us until we can figure out a way to stop her deranged dead husband from killing her."

Phoebe shook her head.

"Do we have enough room?"

"Well she's just going to have to sleep in Paige's room for the time she's here."

"And where will Paige sleep?" Phoebe asked as she set her cup down and began to tickle Kimberly's tummy, making the three year old giggle.

"That's a good question. Well, I guess she's going to have to share a room with one of us." Piper concluded as she took another sip of her tea and glanced over at Melinda's bassinet.

"I'm going to have to do what?" Paige asked as she orbed into the room and went straight over to Melinda's bassinet to say hi to her new niece. "Hey sweetie. How are you, huh? Aw, you are just the cutest little baby in the whole world. Yes you are." Paige bent down and gave Melinda a kiss on her cheek.

"You're going to have to share a room with one of us," Phoebe told her younger sister.

"Why?" Paige asked, looking up from the baby.

"Because Amanda is going to stay with us for a couple of days." Piper explained.

"Oh," Paige sat down next to Phoebe and began absentmindedly playing with Kimberly. "So how long do I have to decide who I'll be staying with?"

"Four days," Piper said as she got up and took her cup to the kitchen sink.

Paige nodded and glanced after Piper uncertainly.

"Don't ask," Phoebe told Paige. "It's not worth it."

Paige just rolled her eyes and continued playing with Kimberly.

"Here we go, sweetie," Piper said as she picked Melinda up and cradled her daughter close. Melinda was being fussy and Piper knew instantly what she wanted. "Mommy is going to feed you in just a little-" Without warning, Leo appeared. He kissed Piper passionately, and then glanced down at his daughter.

"Hey there, princess," he said as he gave Melinda a kiss. "How's Daddy's girl?"

"Say hungry," Piper said as she sat down next to Leo. "I was just about to feed her before you showed up."

Leo nodded and patted Melinda gently on her shoulder.

"Well what's stopping you now?"

"Leo!" Paige scolded with a glare as she came into the room and sat down beside Piper, "breast-feeding is a very intamit and private thing. It's a time for mothers to bond with their babies. It's not something to watch for your own entertainment."

Leo laughed softly.

"Paige has a point," Piper told her husband with a smile.

"I get it," Leo said with a grin.

"So, sweetie," Piper said, turning to Paige, "have you decided who you are going to move in with for the three to four weeks that Amanda is here?"

Paige shook her head.

"Okay. Just wondering."

Paige nodded then left the room.

"So did you find anything out from the Elders about Amanda?" Piper asked her husband as she continued to rock Melinda gently.

Leo shook his head.

"They know the same thing you guys do. Amanda legit. She's not lying."

Piper nodded.

"So Paige is going to be someone's roommate for a few days?" Leo asked with a smile.

Piper giggled.

"Yeah. But I think she'll live."

"I'm interested to see who she chooses," Leo said curiously. "I mean she and Phoebe are like this," he put his hands together in a close motion.

Piper sighed.

"Yeah. I know what you mean. But I kind of would like to see her move in with me. I mean we haven't really gotten off on good terms and I want her to see my sweet side. I don't want her to keep thinking that I'm the wicked witch of San Fransisco."

Leo laughed.

"Aw, honey, she doesn't think that. Paige loves you and Phoebe the same. Trust me."

"I don't know," Piper said with a sigh. "Sometimes I wonder about that."

"Well I should go," he said as he patted Melinda on the shoulder and gave her a kiss. "The Elders wanted to speak to me about something."

"Okay. Well, I'll see you later then," Piper said, hoping the answer would be yes.

"Sure." He gave her a kiss, then orbed out of sight.

Piper shook her head and planted a gentle kiss on Melinda's cheek before preparing to feed her her breakfast. "Your Daddy certainly knows how to make people

think." She told Melinda. "Now for your dinner."

Just then, Phoebe came into the room. She set Kimberly in her high-chair before going to the fridge to get whatever she was making for dinner.

"Hey honey," Phoebe said to Piper as she pulled hamburger meat and tatter tots out of the freezer, "what's up?"

Piper shrugged.

"Nothing much. Just feeding Melinda her dinner."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Phoebe said as she started to blush. "I didn't know. If you want me to wait to make dinner until you're done…."

"No. It's fine." Piper assured her sister. Then she started to laugh softly.

"What's so funny?" Phoebe wanted to know.

"It's just something that Paige said to Leo about breast-feeding that's all."

"What did she say?" Phoebe asked, now she was even giggling.

"I'll tell you later," Piper said, not wanting to say it in front of Kimberly.

Phoebe nodded and began to put the hamburger meat into a bowl.

Just then, Piper blurted out, "Do you think Paige likes you better than me?"

Phoebe was so shocked by her older sister's question, she nearly dropped the bag of potatoes on the floor.

"What?" She asked in disbelief.

"Do you think Paige is closer to you than she is to me?" Piper asked again, this time rephrasing her question so that she wasn't repeating herself.

Phoebe shook her head.

"No. I don't think that's true." She said as she poured Kimberly a cup of apple juice and set it on her tray. "I don't think that's true at all."

"Mommy," Kimberly said as she looked in Phoebe's direction, "Where's Auntie Paige?"

"She's upstairs, sweetie. She'll be down in a little while." Phoebe answered as she continued to make dinner.

Kimberly nodded. She then contented herself by drawing in her scribble pad that Paige had bought her for her third birthday. The little girl enjoyed drawing, like her Aunt Paige. This had thrilled Paige to pieces and she wanted to get her niece started on the right creative path early.

Later that night, Paige walked to her room. She was thinking about the choice she had to make. She loved both of her sisters very much, but this decision was hard. She would probably hurt somebody's feelings with her choice but there was no stopping that from happening.

Ring, ring.

When The doorbell rang, she almost forgot about her

date. This guy was different. His name was Ryan Reiner and this was there sixth date. She couldn't quit figure this guy out, but she new one thing: she liked him. It was a shame she had to keep him at a slight distant. Being a witch was hard

sometimes, but she loved it all the same. She wouldn't want to trade it for anything else. She opened the door to find Ryan. Standing there in a nice outfit, grinning from ear to ear.

He held a bouquet of red roses in his arms. He looked very charming.

It was times like this when Paige wanted to take him in her arms and never let him go, but them something always happened.

Phoebe came around the corner with Kimberly in her arms and broke the spell.

"Hi, Ryan. How are you?" Phoebe asked.

'I'm fine, and how are you, young lady" He asked Kimberly.

Kimberly bowed her head a little and hid behind her mother.

"Kimberly is fine. She's just a little shy. Isn't that right, sweetie?" Phoebe asked as she gave her daughter a kiss on the cheek.

Kimberly nodded.

"Aw, that's okay," Ryan said with a smile. "I'm sure we'll get to be good friends in time."

"Well I'll see you around eleven-thirty," Paige said as she put her coat on.

"Okay." Phoebe said as she put Kimberly down so that she could give Paige a kiss and a hug good-bye.

"I'll see you tomorrow, sweetie," Paige said as she picked Kimberly up and gave her a hug. "You be good for your Mommy and Aunt Piper, okay? I love you."

Kimberly nodded.

"I love you, Auntie Paige." She replied as Paige hugged her close.

Once Paige had put Kimberly in Phoebe's arms, she left with Ryan.

The next morning, Paige didn't want to get up for work even though she knew she had to. She had been up half the night telling Phoebe and Piper all about her date and now she was feeling the after affects of her time spent with her sisters.

After a couple more minutes of lounging, Paige finally forced herself to get out of bed. She got dressed and ran a comb through her reddish blond hair. After she had put it up in a ponytail, she orbed downstairs to get her coat and leave for work.

When Paige reached the first floor of the Manor, she announced to her sisters, "Bye sisters! I'm away to work!" Paige headed for the closet to get her coat and her purse.

As she closed it, she heard Phoebe call out, "Okay. See ya later."

Then Piper chimed in with, "Don't be late, sweetie.

Remember we have to look up that vanquishing spell tonight."

"I know!" Paige called back as she got her keys off the rack and headed for the door.

"Bye Auntie Paige!" Kimberly called as Paige was about to close the door.

"See ya later, sweetheart," Paige said as she grabbed her keys and headed for her car.

After Paige left, Piper prepared to feed Melinda her dinner. She laid her daughter in her lap and pulled up her shirt so that Melinda could get the milk easier. With that, the four week old baby went to town.

Not wanting to disturb Piper, Phoebe lifted Kimberley up and carried her upstairs so that she could read her a book.

Meanwhile, Paige was sitting at her desk in her office, looking at what seemed to be a thousand piles of paperwork. There were forms to fill out for various kids and home-placement reviews to be done. To Paige, it felt like it would take forever. As she flipped through a case file, her mind drifted back to the Manor and to the decision she had to make. How would she choose? How could she choose without hurting Piper or Phoebe's feelings? She loved them both so much and the last thing she wanted to do was hurt either one of them. After all, they were the ones who had taught her the meaning of family.

As Paige continued to stare at the endless pile of paperwork, she got an idea. She took out a notebook that she had brought with her, borrowed a purple pen from one of the holders and began to make a list of prose and cons for sharing a room with Piper and sharing one with Phoebe. This would definitely help her make her final choice, or so she thought.

After work was over, Paige went to have lunch at a diner that was near the house. As she sat down at a round table and waited for the waitress, she continued writing her list.

"What can I get for you this evening, Miss?" The waitress asked, interrupting Paige's concentration.

"Uh, I'll have the soup of the day and a small house salad," Paige replied. "Please."

"All right. I'll be right back. And what would you like to drink?"

Paige thought for a moment.

"A vanilla milk-shake would be great," she said with a grin.

"Vanilla milk-shake it is," the waitress said with a smile.

Paige smiled after the waitress as she left to fill her order.

"Too bad all decisions aren't' that easy," Paige said to herself as the waitress walked away. With that, she went back to writing and checking her list.

She wanted to make the right decision, but something told the youngest sister of the family that it would take more than a list to help her make a final decision.

"There you go, sweetheart," Piper said as she put Melinda down in her crib. "Now you get some sleep and Mommy will see you when you wake up. Okay?"

Melinda responded by gurgling and grabbing Piper's finger with her hand.

As Piper bent down and tickled Melinda's tummy, making her daughter giggle, Leo orbed in. He smiled when he saw his wife and daughter having fun together.

"Perfect timing," Piper said with a smile. "I was just putting this little one down for a nap. Now you can give her a kiss too."

"I'd be happy to," Leo said with fond smile. He bent down and gave Melinda a gentle kiss on the cheek. "Sleep tight, sweetie. Daddy and Mommy will see you when you wake up. Yes."

After Piper had given Melinda a kiss and made sure she wasn't too warm, the couple left the room and headed back downstairs to have a cup of coffee and talk.

"So how's it feel being a mother?" Leo asked as he put his arm around Piper and she laid her head against Leo's shoulder.

"It's going good so far," Piper said sincerely. "I love it when she smiles up at me and grabs my finger with her tiny hand. I love the way she giggles whenever I pick her up after she wakes up from a nap or in the morning. I don't even mind feeding her at two o' clock in the morning. I just love her." She sighed happily and closed her eyes as Leo began to stroke her hair gently.

"Well I'm glad. I just wish I could be around more to love her with you. I feel bad."

"Well you could move in with us," Piper suggested, "then you wouldn't have to worry about not being around as much. Think about it."

"Well if I do move in, then Paige will have to share a room with Phoebe for sure."

"She'll live." Piper laughed softly.

"So has she made her decision yet?" Leo asked curiously. "I'm dying to know."

Piper shook her head.

"Not yet."

"Well where is she?" Leo asked.

"At work," Piper answered as she ran her hand over Leo's shoulder. "She should be home soon."

"And what time is Amanda supposed to come?"

"Tomorrow around 5:00 in the afternoon."

Leo nodded.

Just then, they heard the front door bang open. As it did, Melinda started crying.

"Shh, it's okay, sweetie. It's okay. Come to Mommy. Yeah, it's all right." Piper soothed as she picked up her daughter and cradled her close. "That was probably just your Aunt Phoebe or Aunt Paige. It wasn't anything to be scared of. NO." She gently bent down and gave Melinda a kiss before turning to Leo.

"Do you wanna hold her?"

Leo thought for a moment, then shook his head.

"She seems comfortable where she is. I don't want to make her start crying again."

Piper laughed and patted Leo on the shoulder.

"You won't make her cry. Here," she placed Melinda in Leo's arms and the two started cooing over her softly. Melinda didn't utter a single wail or whimper the entire time her Daddy was holding her.

Leo smiled with pride as he looked down at the miracle that God had blessed them with. Life really was amazing.

"Oh and by the way," Leo whispered, looking up at Piper, "it was probably Paige who came in."

"How do you figure that?" Piper asked.

"Well, I saw Phoebe downstairs playing Disney Guess the Word with Kimberly."

Piper nodded and looked down at her daughter once again.

After Piper and Leo had gotten Melinda off to sleep, Leo kissed Piper good-bye and left. Then Piper went downstairs to see what everyone else was up to.

She stopped near Paige's room and peeked inside. Her youngest sister was putting things into boxes.

"Moving out?" Piper asked jokingly.

Paige glared at her and shook her head.

"No. I'm just packing up a few valuables so that I know they're safe."

"Well I just wanted to let you know for future reference, be careful how you enter the Manor from now on. I mean there are two kids living here now. One is only four weeks old and needs her sleep."

Paige looked confused for a moment, but then nodded.

"Oh, right. I'm sorry. I'll try and remember."

"Good." Piper said with a smile. Then she left.

After Piper was gone, Paige sat on her bed and stared out of the window. She didn't' know what to do. She was at a total loss. She had a choice to make and she didn't even know how she was going to do it. And according to Piper, who knew Amanda best, Paige only had one more day to decide who she was going to share a room with. How was she going to do it?

As Paige pondered over this thought, she suddenly snapped her fingers and ran out of her room, not bothering to lo close the door behind her. As she reached the top of the stairs, she decided to orb. She appeared in the living room and startled Phoebe.

"Sorry," Paige said with a giggle. "I didn't mean to scare ya. I need some sisterly advice."

"I think I can do that," Phoebe said with a fond smile. "Just let me help Kimberly clean up first and then we can talk."

Paige nodded and smiled slightly.

"Or we could clean this up the fast way and have more time to talk." Paige suggested. She smiled mysteriously and Kimberly nodded, knowing what her aunt wanted to do.

Before Phoebe could stop her, Paige closed her eyes and said, "Let the object of objection become but a dream as I cause the scene to be unseen. A place for everything and to everything it's place, put back what was used from this space."

In an instant, the game was back on the shelf upstairs.

Paige smiled triumphantly at her older sister and her niece.

Kimberly giggled and gave Paige a hug.

"Thanks Auntie Paige," she said with a grin. "That was cool!"

"You're welcome, sweetie." Paige said as she picked Kimberly up and gave her a kiss. "Now why don't you go play with Aunt Piper while your Mommy and I talk for a little while, okay?"

Kimberly nodded and Paige put her back down. After Kimberly had given her mother a kiss, she ran off to find Piper.

"That was smooth, missy," Phoebe said with a smile, using her nickname for Paige.

Paige smiled back and nodded.

"I know. Why do everything the hard way?"

"I totally agree," Phoebe said with a laugh. "Now what did you need advice on?"

"Well I'm having a really hard time deciding which one of you guys I want to move in with until Amanda lives," Paige began with a sigh.

Phoebe looked at her sister closely and smiled.

"You're not having any trouble making your decision. I can tell. You've already made it. And I'm here to tell you, you're cheating yourself."

Paige looked confused.

"Huh? What are you talking about? Have you been reading my diary again?" Her expression was one of betrayal and anger.

"No, no, no!" Phoebe said with a soft laugh. "Honest. It's just written all over your face. You picked me and I'm honored, I really am. And under different circumstances I would be happy to have my little sister move in with me. We could talk all night and I could teach you magic and we could share secrets

and give each other advice on boys. And I could tell you stories of all the trouble I got into with magic."

"So what's the problem?" Paige asked, feeling a little confused and a little hurt. "I thought you would want me to move in with you for all those reasons and because you like spending time with me."

"I do like spending time with you. Actually, I love spending time with you. Believe me, honey, I do." Phoebe assured Paige, "but what I don't like is to see you run away from a possible new experience because it's a little frightening for you."

"What do you mean?" Paige asked angrily. "I'm not running away from anything. What am I running away from?"

"it's not a what," Phoebe said softly, "it's a who." She glanced towards the kitchen where Piper was teaching Kimberly how to make chocolate chip cookies.

"Piper?" Paige said incredulously. "You think I'm scared to move in with Piper?"

Phoebe nodded and put her arm around Paige.

"Yes I do. Paige, honey, think about it. Really think about it for a second. You and I have been best friends since you first came to live with us. We've gotten along great and I love spending time with you."

Paige smiled fondly, thinking of how much fun she and Phoebe had had in the past.

Phoebe continued just then.

"It's just that now that all three of us are back together as a family, I think it's time for you to get to know what Piper is like. Take that dive into the unknown and mystery girl." She smiled a little and patted Paige on the shoulder.

"What if I drown?" Paige asked. "What if Piper and I don't get a long? She hasn't exactly been on the welcoming committee."

Phoebe nodded.

"This is true. But believe me, I know Piper a little bit better than that. She'll come around in time. And the best place for her to do that is on her own territory. I know it sounds nuts, but trust me. After about two days, she'll come to see that you aren't a threat to her and you'll come to see that she isn't the

Wicked Witch of San Fransisco."

Paige giggled slightly, but then frowned.

"Piper thinks I'm a threat?"

"Well not exactly," Phoebe said slowly.

"Well that's what you said she thought," Paige said, her brown eyes flashing with anger. "Why would she think that?"

"I think she felt like that at first because it was hard for her when…Prue died. She saw you as a threat or a replacement for her."

Paige nodded and frowned thoughtfully.

A few minutes later, Phoebe continued.

"I don't really know if that's true or not. I'm just guessing. Honestly, you have to ask her. Maybe that would be a good thing for you guys to talk about tomorrow night." Phoebe suggested. "Clear the air. Start off new and fresh."

Paige nodded, but somehow she still wasn't sure about all of this.

Twenty-five minutes later, Paige walked into the kitchen where Piper and Kimberly were finishing the dough for the chocolate chip cookies.

Paige decided that she was going to tell Piper that she had picked her and sooner was better than later. She took a deep breath and walked up behind her older sister and tapped her on the back.

"Oh, honey, you scared me." Piper said with a small laugh. "What's up?"

"I-I want you to know I've made my decision," she said with a sigh.

"That's great," Piper said with a grin. "And don't worry. I'm not hurt at all. I'm sure we'll be able to share a room in the future."

"That's just it," Paige said with a small smile. "The future is now. I picked you. You're going to be my new roommate."

"Well, I-I don't know what to say," Piper said as she gave Paige a small hug.

"Say thank you," Kimberly said with a smile. "That's being polite."

"Out of the mouth of babes," Paige said as she and Piper both started laughing.

"Well, thanks," Piper said sincerely. "And I promise you. You won't regret your choice."

Paige nodded. She sat down at the kitchen table and began to flip through one of Phoebe's fashion magazines.

Just then, Piper heard Melinda start to cry.

"Here," Paige said, jumping up from her seat. "I'll give you a hand." She ran to Piper's side and orbed both of them upstairs to the baby's room.

"Aw, what's the matter, sweetie?" Piper asked as she picked Melinda up. "Are you hungry, huh? Do you want Mommy to feed you?"

As Piper cradled Melinda close, she noticed that Paige was standing by the door, watching her. "Would you like to hold her?"

Paige nodded.

"Sure."

Piper gently placed Melinda in her aunt's arms and Paige hugged her close.

"Hi, honey," Paige said softly. "I'm your Aunt Paige. Yes. And you are just the cutest little thing. Yes you are. And I love you so much, yes I do. Auntie Paige loves you so much, Lin." She gave Melinda a kiss on her cheek before gazing back up at Piper. "I think she likes me."

"Well of course she does," Piper said with a smile. "She would be crazy not to. She loves you. You're her aunt, but more than that, you're her God mother."

Paige smiled as she continued to hold her niece.

Later that night, Piper was in her bedroom, reading a book when she heard a knock at her door.

"Come in," she said, putting the book down and looking up.

"Hey," Paige said as she came into the room and sat on Piper's bed. She was carrying a pillow and a book.

"Hey, Missy Paige. What's this?" She asked, looking at the pillow that Paige was now putting on the other bed.

"Well I've decided to move in a day early," Paige replied as she settled down on the extra bed and smiled at Piper.

"Okay," Piper said as she smiled at her sister. "Sounds good to me."

Paige smiled at her older sister. Phoebe was right. This was going to turn out all right after all. And she knew that she had made the right choice.

THE END


End file.
